(( I hope it's not in bad taste to write another short story in this thread. It's just great creative exercise! ))
A shadow followed them home.
The wind howled slowly in the boy's ear. In his hand, his little sister's small fingers embraced his own, webbed in a tight knot of affection...
It was quiet, for a moment. The soft humming of the semi-malfunctioned bedside lamp had now begun to fade. The soft white noise of crackling electricity had abruptly stopped into a miserable silence, and the soft breeze that once whistled outside had disappeared.
The once gentle-faced child...